Divan’s day to forget at Vodacom Origins

Professional golfer Divan Gerber, last month, experienced one of those days he’ll want to forget in a hurry.

The Bethlehem-based professional incurred four penalty shots in the opening round of the Vodacom Origins of Golf presented by Samsung at Koro Creek. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, he was then disqualified from the tournament for signing for the incorrect score.

It was a tough day, but you learn from it. That’s life,” he said with a smile.

“On the third hole we found a ball in the hazard. I didn’t check if it had my mark on it and I played it. It wasn’t my ball, which is a two-shot penalty,” explained Gerber.

“In the interim, my caddie found my ball in the hazard so I had to go back and play that, with another one-shot penalty. I walked away with an eight on that par four. Then, on the 18th, I was waiting to play my chip to the green when the ball moved. I asked some of the other pros on the nearby putting green what the ruling was and they said I should replace it and take a one-shot penalty. As it was, because I didn’t cause the ball to move that ruling was incorrect and I should have just played the ball without penalty because I didn’t cause it to move.

“It was a tough day, but you learn from it. That’s life,” he said with a smile.